New Member - First time Chicken Mom

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YardBirdMom

YardBirdMom

Songster
5 Years
Apr 1, 2014
278
34
108
Tryon, Oklahoma
Hello Chicken community and fellow bird lovers!!!! :)

I am SO over the moon excited to find a community with awesome pics of coops, information and other people who raise chickens.
I've wanted chickens since we moved here, 9yrs ago, and each year I said this is THE year and each year something came up and I was disappointed. BUT, this year I decided that no matter what I WAS getting my chickens.

My plans for chickens this year (2014) weren't looking good, AGAIN!

Well, we just happened into a local feed store for some other farm supplies and lo' and behold I hear peeping!!
I HAD to go look, didn't I? Hubby ventured off to find something (his first mistake) and by the time he came back I was chatting it up with this lovely young girl as she was taking the bands out of my new chicks wings :D
Yes, his first mistake was walking away and his second was walking away while I had my checkbook with me LOL
I bought 10 Golden Sex links and 5 Black Sex links!! I came home and that afternoon I ordered more from a hatchery out of Iowa!

They should arrive April 22nd and by they I mean:
10 Buff Rocks, 9 Light Brahmas, 3 Partridge Rock, 1 Buff Rock rooster, 1 Partridge Rock rooster, and a free exotic chick!

Guess what we did this weekend??? Re-roofed my coop and finished the ramp and roosts :) This Thursday the carport arrives and it will be framed in and attached to the coop (8'x12') to make a predator proof run that is 12'x21' for a total of 348 square feet of space, not including the free range space they'll have access to!
I will post pics later ....
 
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Well congrats on all those new babies!! I am not allowed to go into any feed stores this spring as I am told I have enough chickens.....NOT!!
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Dangerous places those feed stores and peeping chicks!

If you need any tips and hints of raising your new brood, stop by our learning center here on BYC for lots of good reads on all the aspects of keeping poultry...

https://www.backyardchickens.com/atype/1/Learning_Center

Great to have you aboard and enjoy all those new babies!!
 
Hello :frow and Welcome To BYC! Congratulations on finally getting those chicks! Sounds like chicken math has already taken hold, that is going to be a pretty little flock and a lot of eggs! X2 on TwoCrows suggestion of stop by the Learning Center and check out the articles.
 
YardBirdMom said:
<snip>
I bought 10 Golden Sex links and 5 Black Sex links!! I came home and that afternoon I ordered more from a hatchery out of Iowa!

They should arrive April 22nd and by they I mean:
10 Buff Rocks, 9 Light Brahmas, 3 Partridge Rock, 1 Buff Rock rooster, 1 Partridge Rock rooster, and a free exotic chick!
<snip> This Thursday the carport arrives and it will be framed in and attached to the coop (8'x12') to make a predator proof run that is 12'x21' for a total of 348 square feet of space, not including the free range space they'll have access to!
I will post pics later ....
Click to expand...
Hi YardBirdMom, and greetings from a former Tulsan. Wow, 40 chickens within two months! (I'm not that brave!) Where did you get the idea for using a carport to make an enclosed run? Will it be wood or metal? Great idea and it should go up quickly. I'm looking forward to your photos. You can even link your step-by-step construction videos if you'd like (hint, hint). Ha!
 
Thank you TwoCrows, Kelsie, Gander and Hooligan!

I have spent the better part of the day on this forum reading everything I can get my hands on, but it hasn't been healthy for my marriage LOL
My husband is quite miffed at me after explaining that I have learned a few things about chickens and we must do some modifications inside the coop.
He asked me a brilliant question, "My grandmothers chicken house didn't have windows and all this fancy stuff so why does this one need it"???
My response, after smiling sweetly and batting my eyelashes was, "Sweetie, it's what will make ME and the chickens happy"....
I cannot blame him for his frustrations and I take full responsibility, which truly helped take the sting out of the fact I want him to destroy part of what he built for me, and all is well once again
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Hooligans7, I may have bit off more than I can chew. They are so little and well it didn't seem like a lot when I was ordering them, but I have ulterior motives for wanting a large flock. We gave some of last years beef to a local food pantry, operated by a church, when we put our new one in the freezer and I asked if they ever got donations for fresh veggies or eggs and they said no. I am determined to change that so I will need every precious girl giving me her best!

We have an older carport that we were going to incorporate into the run, but it was going to be very difficult to move so we opted to purchase a new one. We have flying predators, coons, coyotes, dogs (etc, so we felt it necessary to have something critter proof, covered, and also to provide shade. We do not have any shade trees on our property so it serves all purposes.

It is a metal (tube) frame with sheet metal on the top that rounds down on the east/west sides about 1'. We are digging a trench and placing sheet metal into the ground to prevent animals from digging under (I plan to add some cement as well) and it will come up 2' all the way around, except where the walk-through door will be.
We will frame it out with 2x4's and put 1"x1" square weld-wire between the bottom and top sheet metal. We wanted the metal because it prevents paws from reaching through
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Not sure if I can do an entire video, but I will happily take pictures of the process as we go so someone else can utilize it if they choose.
 

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